So, it’s Monday afternoon and I think it’s appropriate, first and foremost, to thank those of you who so kindly and perhaps a bit absent-mindedly predicted that I’d be raptured. That was sweet of you, and I’m glad you think I’m angelic enough to go north instead of south. To those of you who figured I wouldn’t be raptured, and cited blog posts asserting that fact (namely, my feelings on Hayden P.’s vahayhay, Meena), thank you, too, for predicting what is actually quite possibly much closer to the truth of what might have happened, should rapture fear mongers have been correct in their predictions. Either way, I’m just glad I’m still around to blog, because OMIGOD, THIS WEDDING.

Submitted by Lauren Kinsey Photography, today’s wedding was kind of miraculous. Why? Well, when you look at these images, you’re probably not going to be able to tell, but a HAIL STORM essentially attacked the day of Susan and Matt’s nuptials. Not cool, Mother Nature. Not cool. Fortunately, a Plan B was in place, and things went off essentially without a hitch. I can’t stress this Plan B stuff enough, my loves. Wanna get married outside? AWESOME, just please have some sort of alternative in the case of inclement weather, because how much will it suck if it rains and you’re in the middle of a beautiful, totally manicured field-type area, which is decorated with all those DIY elements that you and your bridesmaids and your mom and their moms worked on for months before the wedding, which have been crowding your apartment/home for at least 6 weeks, making life almost unbearable for you and your honey, potentially causing fights and keeping you up late at night blah blah blah, et cetera. IMAGINE all of that aforementioned stuff decorating your ceremony area, and then imagine all of that stuff being totally OWNED BY THE RAIN.

The thought of that makes you throw up a little bit in your mouth, right?

So. Plan B. Do it.

Moving right along. Here are some words – and some killer advice – from our beautiful bride re: her big day and how she didn’t let a little hail get in her way (P.S. – I looooove their first dance song, it’s like one of my favorite songs in the world ok I’m done):

Our wedding took place at the Town Hall in Rosemary beach on scenic Highway 30 A in Florida. Our families vacation there often, and we both love the area so much. Getting married there was perfect! As is often the case with us, things never go as we plan. God likes to keep things interesting in our lives! We planned to be married on the courtyard outside of the Town Hall, but stormy weather came through during the afternoon causing us to move the event inside. I am very laid back, sometimes TOO laid back, so I was fine with whatever had to happen.

Bridal party flowers and arrangements were provided by Tulip, a floral studio located in Jackson, MS where I am from. My main color for the wedding was navy with accents of white, green and shades of pink. I describe the style of our wedding as relaxed elegance, from attire to décor. We incorporated a clean, simple nautical look throughout the wedding décor. Nothing was overstated, and it looked great. I designed my own invitations and programs for the wedding and picked out a lot of the décor for the wedding myself. My bride?s bouquet was composed of soft pink peonies and garden roses in various shades of pink. Bridesmaids bouquets were composed of mini green hydrangea, Darci garden roses, and soft pink candy Bianca roses. Rounding out the look, a navy blue and white grosgrain ribbon was wrapped around the stem.

The festivities began with a traditional Spanish dinner of paella prepared by mother and aunt. My mother is originally from Spain, and my dad met her while in the navy. He was stationed near her home town and in the six months he knew her, he fell in love and married her. She and my brother then came to live with him here in the United States. How romantic, huh? My aunt traveled from Spain to see me get married. Poor thing couldn’t speak a lick of English. The next night, our rehearsal dinner was held at Café 30A in Seagrove and afterwards, we partied the night away with close friends at Tootsies in Panama City Beach. The morning of the wedding, my husband?s employer, Madison Polymer Additives, hosted a grooms breakfast at Another Broken Egg in Destin. My mother hosted a bride?s breakfast at the Great Southern Café in Seaside the morning of the wedding. It was storming when Matt and I shared our first look, but it was a special time I am grateful for. I will remember our ?first look? as long as I live. Everyone was hopeful the storm would be over before the ceremony and that we would still be able to get married outside. The rain never let up, so 45 minutes before the ceremony everyone was scrambling to move everything inside. I was very emotional walking down the aisle. So was my dad. My nieces tease him to this day about his trembling chin! Immediately after the ceremony, the rain clouds vanished and the sun appeared! Since we were unable to go outside for pictures before the ceremony, we were ecstatic to be able to do so afterwards. The pictures were taken at Alys Beach down the road from Rosemary, and the pictures were A-MA-ZING! I think we were all excited to get outside in the sunshine and play for a while after being cooped up inside all day. While we were off taking pictures, the bar was opened, and guests were entertained by the band ?The Conch Republic? singing beachy tunes from the likes of Jimmy Buffett and Bob Marley to name a few. We arrived at the reception, and Matt and I shared our first dance as husband and wife to “Let it be Me” by Ray Lamontagne, a song Matt picked. Dinner was catered by Emerald Coast Catering. Gary and his staff were great. The food was delicious. Cakes were prepared by Fatty Patty?s Cakes. My cake was a simple three tier cake adorned with ribbon and a single flower on each tier. It was everything I imagined. It was simply stunning and tasted divine. I am proud to say I won the cake fight! Matt?s cake was an USM golden eagle head. We both graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi, and our mascot is a golden eagle. The cake was atop a candy buffet with m&ms, gumballs, and candy sticks in our college colors, black and gold. After dinner and cake, the girls and I danced while Matt and the guys enjoyed ?man time? outside smoking cigars. The reception was an absolute blast! Everyone had a great time.

If I can offer any advice to future brides, it would be this. Relax. Be sure to have a good support group around you. Trust me, your mind will be gone the day of the wedding, so make sure you have someone who can make logical last minute decisions for you if needed. Things will not go perfectly, but there is beauty in everything. Every wedding, in its own way, is imperfectly perfect. At the end of the day, you are married to the love of your life. And that?s all that really matters, right? Right! One more bit of advice, hang on tight! We left the reception on a golf cart, and I fell off on the way back to where we would be staying the night. I obviously was not hanging on tight enough when the cart took off from a stop, and I was slung off. No harm was done and we laughed once it was determined I was alright. However, I did have a softball sized bruise on my thigh the entire week of my honeymoon!

Our wedding was very special, and I cherish the time spent with my family and closest friends during our wedding weekend. We all reminisce about the “going ons” from the wedding weekend ’til this day, and it gives us belly laughs still.

A few words from Lauren on the positives that occasionally come out of the negatives:

Susan happens to be a fantastic photographer based in Mississippi! Originally, the wedding was to be held on the lawn next to the Rosemary Beach Town Hall, but a hail storm the day of the wedding prevented it and forced the ceremony indoors. It only stopped raining long enough for portraits following the ceremony and Santa Rosa Beach had one of the most beautiful sunsets and double rainbows that evening!

So, it’s happening, people. This puppy is officially on its way to getting too big to be lapped. His feet hang off my legs when he’s there, so… sad face… he spends a lot of time at my feet, or jumping up on my legs ever so cutely to get back into the cuddle position. Case in point:

Poor baby. Here’s another attempt:

That’s his Greek statue pose, which is enormously adorable and happens quite often.

All of this works for him, by the way. I always pick him up, OF COURSE. (He’s actually in my lap right now. It’s not a great fit, but we’re making it work.)

SO, what do you think of this wedding? How awesomely did they pull this off while a HAIL STORM was totally happening?!! I don’t know about you, but I’m more than a little impressed. :)

Your puppy is so cute. I like that you add him to posts :) And this wedding is lovely, hail or not. I specifically love that the bride was just laid back about the whole thing. I think I would have freaked out over hail!

Alison! Thank you so much for featuring the completely lovely wedding of Susan + Matt! I am humbled by everyones kind words, and we are over the moon that you all love it! :) thank you again for sharing!

I think my favorite part is Bambino, but that’s typical ;) My next favorite, and a CLOSE second, is their wedding cake. It’s very similar to what I envision for my own wedding- my colors are navy and white so this is kind of great inspiration :D Thanks! Great wedding!

Thank goodness you and Bambino (I’m sure he was un-rapture-able by extension) survived Saturday-I don’t know what I’d do without you two!

As for this wedding, heeellllllo heaven. It would have been a totally drop dead gorgeous wedding had there NOT been hail, but the addition of seriously inclement weather just puts this celebration over the top. The bride’s face when she was walking down the aisle is STILL giving me chills.

That cake is just to die for! I had something similar happen at my wedding- a couple of hours before a blizzard began… In the middle of April! But it cleared up just as we were about to walk down the aisle and everything was covered with a picturesque dusting of snow.

Lena – It really is so shocking that a hail storm hit at the same time this wedding happened. Because the pictures are hail-less. Incroyable!!! And OMG I know, her face walking towards her groom is THE BEST EVER. Those are always my favorite shots :)

So Gorgeous! I started playing “Let it be me” when I got to that part in her story and I couldn’t hold back the tears. I could just picture the two of them dancing to it! So Amazing! I love hearing stories about the brides that had bad weather on their big day and manage to make the best of it. Thanks Alison!

i totally admire the brides relaxed nature, wish i could have one myself! however it shows how her attitude paid off because its a stunningly beautiful wedding, i would have ended up with puffy eyes from all the crying i had done!

Oh my goodness! I absolutely love this. I am so completely floored by this feature! Allison, thank you for noticing my sweet little wedding and showcasing it on your blog, which i am obsessed with now by the way! I want to get married all over again and use each and every idea on the blog. I am so blessed to have found lauren. She was the most perefect photographer and an instant friend for life! Everyone else, your comments were so sweet, and im glad some of you have found inspiration from my wedding. :) i teared up a little reading all of this..

Susan, you were such a GORGEOUS bride and you and Matt are the perfect couple! I love the story about your ring and how Matt had it made just for you….the LOVE of his life. I remember when Matt was little. He was the cutest thing and I knew one day, he would pick the perfect wife for himself. The pics are awesome and I hate I missed the wedding. GOD BLESS YALL and hopefully, I will see you soon. Remember, BE HAPPY, PLACE GOD FIRST, and everything else will work out. I love you both! IN HIM, Kay